Harley/Biker traditions....?

Three months ago I was riding my dads '03 anniversary edition ultra classic and a lady ran a red light making a left turn and t-boned me and my girlfriend. the short version is that she shattered both bones (tib/fib) in my leg and my girlfriend, while not broken, is banged up pretty good. The bike's totaled and we are are on the very slow road to recovery. We were at a bike rally this weekend (not on a bike but it was the first excursion out since the accident!) and ended up talking to an older lady and her brother (both riders) and she told us that we earned our broken wings and they explained to us the meaning of it and how to wear that patch is an old and proud, long standing tradition, one that i hadnt heard about. She showed us hers and how she earned them. Obviously we were eager to find this patch and wear it proudly saying we went down and are (slowly) bouncing back up. But this also got me thinking, what other traditions might me out there that we dont know about? Do you know any? Heard of any? I certainly dont mean any offense by this, but I'm not talking of bells to ward off "road gremlins", I'm talking of true meaning, be it "the wave" to show our brotherhood or broken wings..............what do ya got?

oh, on a side note....like i said we were on my dads bike, mine is safe and sound in the garage. she's an 07 softail deluxe and she's waiting for me and I can't wait to jump back on her when the leg is well enough. Unfortunately it scared my dad enough to keep him off, maybe he figures he wouldnt fare quite as well (well?) as we did.

bluefilhd - sorry to hear about your accident...that just flat out stinks. I'm sitting here watching the evening news, and there was a biker in Clearwater, FL that is in serious condition after what looked like a 20-something woman did the same thing. The camera is on this woman as she's sitting on the ground, showing a pill bottle on top of her car and they're commenting on her 2 prior DUI offenses. Ditzy blonde? Yep, I'd say she had the look of a ditzy blonde.

Quite frankly the odds are not in our favor when all it takes is 16 years of living to get your passport to tool around in a 2500lb bullet. Personally I'm not so sure I'd be so quick to dismiss the guardian bell, as I think you have to have a little luck on your side to ride safe in this sport. I was sitting at a red light a few months back in a major intersection, the light had turned red and I know it was red for a good 3 seconds, and here comes a cadillac barrelling right thru this red light. Never even slowed down. I saw that and said wow. You never know.

Here's to a quick recovery for you and the miss'. Ride em safe...your life depends on it!

Sorry to hear your misfortune. Glad everything is turning out OK. As trvlr
has stated about the gremlin bell I have received one from my girl friend 12 years ago and I firmly believed it has helped both good or bad, when I was at fault or someone else. My girlfriend is now my wife of 10 years. This year alone I believed the bell helped me with target fixation and not plowing into a guard rail on a turn, from being rear ended in the rain a month ago though very scary I had to run a red light to avoid being hit, and the latest from being hit head on on a 2 lane road with passing and the intruding vehicle would not back off which caused me to brake heavily and go off the road to avoid becoming a hood ornament. So the bell is a serious tradition.

I completely understand and accept the tradition of the bell. I guess I'm just not sure I believe the superstition of it if that makes sense. Maybe it's a riders skill that gets them out of a potentially bad situation. I'd believe that before the fact that a bell was on the bike. Just my personal view of it. But I have nothing against the bell or the riders that have them, trvlr was certainly right, we all need whatever luck we can get, wherever it comes from.

Sorry to hear your misfortune. Glad everything is turning out OK. As trvlr
has stated about the gremlin bell I have received one from my girl friend 12 years ago and I firmly believed it has helped both good or bad, when I was at fault or someone else. My girlfriend is now my wife of 10 years. This year alone I believed the bell helped me with target fixation and not plowing into a guard rail on a turn, from being rear ended in the rain a month ago though very scary I had to run a red light to avoid being hit, and the latest from being hit head on on a 2 lane road with passing and the intruding vehicle would not back off which caused me to brake heavily and go off the road to avoid becoming a hood ornament. So the bell is a serious tradition.

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My bell was in my tool box at work when my bike got hit, I had planned on putting it on that night, Strange Huh:newsmile100:

Karma and fate go hand and hand.
I am not suggesting that after 25 years of riding and averaging 6,000 miles a year that the bell holds all the luck. It is combined with a tremendous amount of experience, knowing your limitations and also testing my abilities all the time while riding, not becoming complacent, and continually reading motorcycle safety articles.
I still consider myself very fortunate for the saying says " Those who have and those who will." Refering to misfortune on a motorcycle. In 25 years I have had some close calls but thats it.

Please, I am not throwing any stones here, every man for his own belief, and that is ok by me. But as for me I believe in prayer and in that prayer placing gaurdian angels around me and my wife and friends before we ride and giving thanks before and after the ride. God has kept me safe and I survied a wreck that should have taken me out with out any harm except some road rash. Heres to praying for all you guys also every day.
May god bless each one of us as we dodge the devils atemps to take us out.